California, United States – SpaceX launched a new batch of Starlink satellites from the central coast of California on June 24.

A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 11:30 p.m. EDT, carrying 24 broadband satellites into low Earth orbit.

The first stage of the rocket returned to Earth about 8.5 minutes after liftoff, landing on the Pacific Ocean drone ship named “Of Course I Still Love You.”

The booster used for the mission was identified as B1081, completing its 25th flight during this launch.

Meanwhile, the upper stage continued its journey and delivered the 24 satellites into low Earth orbit just under 62 minutes after liftoff.

The launch marked the 74th Falcon 9 mission of the year and the 59th dedicated to expanding the Starlink satellite network in 2026.

Starlink currently consists of nearly 10,700 active satellites and continues to grow as deployments continue.

In addition to Falcon 9 missions, SpaceX has also conducted other launches this year, including a Falcon Heavy mission on April 29 carrying the Viasat-3 F3 satellite, and a Starship test flight on May 22.

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